


Of kisses, pebbles and truths

by AllumetteRouge (RedRaidingHood)



Category: Batman (Comics), DCU (Comics)
Genre: M/M, Pre-New 52
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-05
Updated: 2015-06-05
Packaged: 2018-04-03 01:24:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4081156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedRaidingHood/pseuds/AllumetteRouge
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tim kissed Dick, the man he’d adored for years, had silently pined after, knowing his feelings wouldn’t be returned.<br/>Now all he wanted was to be left alone, but apparently, not everyone had gotten that message.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of kisses, pebbles and truths

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Father and Sons](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4047433) by [AllumetteRouge (RedRaidingHood)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedRaidingHood/pseuds/AllumetteRouge). 



> Yeah, "Father and sons" wasn't built on a very close scenario at all.  
> All right, those two ideas totally went hand-in-hand, I admit, but what can I do? It's fun to write!

Tim kissed Dick. Dick, the man he’d adored for years, had silently pined after, knowing his feelings wouldn’t be returned. Now he’d kissed him and Dick had made them _talk_. He’d been real gentle, too; the best big brother Tim could’ve hoped for and for all the rejection hurt, he was glad they’d handled it like responsible adults. Or at least Dick had. Tim... was having a small crisis.

His big brother was great, he was wonderful and so stupidly loveable. Tim clutched a handful of pebbles off the roof he sat on and let the small stones drop from his fingers one by one. In Kansas, he would’ve been able to see the stars now, but this was Gotham. He would’ve been lucky if it wasn’t the bat-symbol lightening up the dark clouds.

He’d kissed Dick. His hero, his idol. His big brother.

Cursing, Tim let himself fall back, pressing an arm over his face and muttering under his breath. He’d known. Both of them had known and it wasn’t fair. It just wasn’t fair how much it hurt. Tim never had a chance _and he knew that_. Now all he wanted was to feel just a little sorry for himself before eventually returning to his family.

He’d be fine, he told them. Promised Dick. Apparently, not everyone had gotten _that_ message though.

Tim let the arm fall from his face, snarling at the newcomer. “What?”

Jason blinked. It was an interesting sight, the Red Hood without any kind of mask, blinking and staring at him utterly confused. As if he thought Tim wouldn’t notice his arrival.

“You’re not _that_ stealthy.”

“Who said I was trying to be?” Jason shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “What are you doing here anyway? Becoming one with the roof? With Gotham?” He kicked at the pebbles beneath his feet. “Oh God, that’s it, right? You’re--”

“--No,” Tim interrupted before it could get even more ridiculous. He really wasn’t in the mood for this. All he wanted was to be _alone_. He’d kissed Dick. “What do you want?”

Tim’s stomach churned when Jason stepped closer, obviously not intending to leave any time soon. Instead, the man sat down next to him. “I’m out to get some info.” Jason reached into his jacket, producing both cigarettes and lighter while Tim sat up. It was strange seeing the Red Hood without his iconic helmet. That thing either got Jason in the habit of having a real bad pokerface, or he just didn’t care. It was plain to see that Jason wanted something and knowing the stubborn bastard, he wouldn’t leave until he got it.

“What kind of information?”

Jason clicked the lighter shut and took a drag before tilting his head back and blowing the smoke towards the gray sky. Smoking didn’t usually annoy Tim. Using the habit to draw out an answer, however, did. He was stalling. Why was he stalling?

“I need to know who’s buying those AK-47.”

Well, that was a stupid lie. Tim raised an eyebrow sceptically. “Penguin. Everyone knows that. _You_ know that, Hood.”

He surprised himself by smiling at the respone he got. In his defence, Jason so obviously floundering, having to look away and take another drag from his cigarette, was kind of amusing.

“ _'Jason'_ ,” the man finally replied, and _that_ Tim recognized. It was a game. A kind of game they were playing. Tim refusing to call him by the name of the boy who had died, the one he’d replaced, and Jason correcting him. Or... wanting him to use that name instead? Most of the time, Tim didn’t really know, but he also wasn’t in the mood to contemplate Jason’s antics. He’d kissed Dick.

Shaking his head, Jason let it go and went on to stare at him. “Everyone knows that, huh?” He looked Tim in the eye when he flicked the butt of his cigarette off the roof. “Just like everyone knows you’re crushing on your ‘big brother’?”

Such an _ass_ hole. Every time Tim’d caught sight of the boy Jason was hiding behind his masks and gruff behaviour, the dumbass needed to get defensive. And with Jason, ‘getting defensive’ meant someone would get hurt. That someone usually was Tim and he really, really wasn’t in the mood for that stupid insecure defence mechanism right now. He’d kissed Dick.

“Jeez, you can’t even try to be an adult, can you?” Tim grabbed a pebble and threw it at Jason angrily. “Yes, I did kiss him. Yes, I got rejected. And _yes, it freaking hurts_. Happy now?”

Looking up from where he’d fumbled with the pebble, Jason actually seemed surprised.

Oh, _hell_. He probably hadn’t known about the stunt Tim’d pulled earlier. Cursing himself internally, Tim almost missed the vulnerable look that crossed Jason’s face. The one right before he crossed his arms, hackles rising for the teasing that would inevitably come.

It didn’t. Instead, Jason exhaled, his voice almost soft when he finally spoke. “Why did you do it?”

Tim could see him. Could see the boy he’d followed years ago, the one who’d shaped his image of Robin more than even Dick or Batman. “I--” The words stuck in this throat. Why _did_ he do it? Why now? He’d always known it would end like this, that it would never be worth the risk.

“I--” Jason was looking at him. Not intimidating, not mocking, just. He was there. Jason was close and warm and Tim found himself leaning into the comfort another human being provided. They touched from shoulder to knee. Jason just being there; not the angry man he’d become, not the Red Hood, but _Jason_. Warm and solid and _there_ and finally, the knot in Tim’s chest dissolved, the words spilling from his mouth. “I’m over him now.”

Jason raised an eyebrow but otherwise remained silent.

“I wanted to know how it feels. I needed to know, I think. And now. Now that I know, I’m over him. I can get over him and forget all that and... and I think that’s it. We talked about it afterwards, right?” His hands started to move, his whole body feeling lighter. Tears he’d held back in front of his brother now spilled freely.

“He’s - He doesn’t hate me. He’s still my brother and he still loves me.” Tim’s voice cracked at the end but he forced himself to go on, lost in the feeling of having someone listen. And Jason was still there, still warm and solid and open.

“I kissed him because I wanted to. I’ve always wanted to. And now... now I’m finally able to move on.” He smiled. It felt strange, he was crying and shivering and his nose was running and - and still. He was happy, smiling. Relieved. In that short moment, he believed it. He could do it, could move on from this stupid crush he’d harboured for years.

 _Yeah, right_. His smile slipped, face contorting into an ugly grimace. A sob wrecked through his body and Jason tucked him under his arm. Close and warm and solid, his gloved hand soft against Tim’s cheek; making him see those earnest eyes. Unmasked, unguarded. Hurting. For him?

Tim forced his lungs to work. “Jason?”

This close, he could feel the answering hum on his face, the breath warm against his lips.

“Kissing to get over someone, huh.” Jason’s hand was steady on his face and he didn’t close his eyes, not when his fingers started to tremble, when he leant in those last few inches.

It was warm and shocking and Tim didn’t want it to stop, didn’t want _Jason_ to stop. He couldn’t breathe, didn’t want to breath, but Jason pulled back. There was something in his eyes, something of the forlorn boy Tim could see just before he squeezed them shut. Jason let him go, turning to look straight ahead and lighting another cigarette. 

This time, he didn’t mind Jason using the habit to stall. Didn’t mind the few extra seconds of stunned silence he had before having to come back, to realize this was still Gotham, still the same dumb situation he’d been in before and nothing had changed.

“Yeah,” Jason finally spoke, the cigarette held close to his face, thumb dragging against his lip. “Don’t think that works for me either.”

**Author's Note:**

> So, I do hope you enjoyed reading this!  
> Feel free to comment and/or criticize <3


End file.
